Adaptively configurable class-A/class-B transmit DAC for transceiver emission and power consumption control

ABSTRACT

A power efficient and reduced electromagnetic interference (EMI) emissions transmitter for unshielded twisted pair (UTP) data communication applications. Transmit data is processed by a digital filter. The digital filter output data is converted to a current-mode analog waveform by a digital-to-analog converter (DAC). The digital filter is integrated with the DAC binary decoder in a memory device such as a ROM with time multiplexed output. DAC line driver cells are adaptively configurable to operate in either a class-A or a class-B mode depending on the desired operational modality. A discrete-time analog filter is integrated with the DAC line driver to provide additional EMI emissions suppression. An adaptive electronic transmission signal cancellation circuit separates transmit data from receive data in a bidirectional communication system operating in full duplex mode. For a multi-transmitter system, timing circuitry staggers the time base of each transmitter to reduce the aggregate EMI emissions of the multi-transmitter system.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

[0001] This patent application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 120 ofU.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/399,202, filed Sep. 17, 1999,entitled “ADAPTIVELY CONFIGURABLE CLASS-A/CLASS-B TRANSMIT DAC FORTRANSCEIVER EMISSION AND POWER CONSUMPTION CONTROL,” and is acontinuation of U.S. patent application Ser. No. 09/429,893, filed Oct.29, 1999, entitled “INTEGRATED GIGABIT ETHERNET TRANSMITTERARCHITECTURE,” which claims the benefit of the filing date or UnitedStates Provisional Patent Applications Serial No. 60/106,265, filed Oct.30, 1998 and entitled “POWER EFFICIENT AND REDUCED EMI EMISSIONSTRANSMITTER”, 60/107,105, filed Nov. 4, 1998 and entitled “GIGABITETHERNET TRANSMITTER”, 60/107,702, filed Nov. 9, 1998 and entitled“ETHERNET GIGABIT ANALOG SYSTEM”, and 60/108,001, filed Nov. 11, 1998and entitled “ADAPTIVE ELECTRONIC HYBRID LINE DRIVER FOR GIGABITETHERNET”, the entire contents of which are hereby expresslyincorporated by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

[0002] The present invention relates to transmission systems fortransmitting analog data on an unshielded twisted pair (UTP) of wires.More specifically, this invention is directed to an integrated gigabitEthernet transmitter.

[0003] The past few years has witnessed an almost exponential growth inthe extent of high speed data networks, and the data transmission speedscontemplated over such networks. In particular, bidirectional datatransmission in accordance with the various Ethernet network protocols,over unshielded twisted pair (UTP) wiring, has emerged as the networkimplementation of choice for general commercial LAN installations aswell as for some of the more prosaic residential and academicapplications.

[0004] Local Area Networks (LAN) provide network connectivity forpersonal computers, workstations and servers. Ethernet, in its original10BASE-T form, remains the dominant network technology for LANs.However, among the high speed LAN technologies available today, FastEthernet, or 100BASE-T, has become the leading choice. Fast Ethernettechnology provides a smooth, non-disruptive evolution from the 10megabits per second (Mbps) performance of the 10BASE-T to the 100 Mbpsperformance of the 10dBASE-T. The growing use of 100BASE-T connectionsto servers and desktops is creating a definite need for an even higherspeed network technology at the backbone and server level.

[0005] The most appropriate solution to this need, now in development,is Gigabit Ethernet. Gigabit Ethernet will provide 1 gigabit per second(Gbps) bandwidth with the simplicity of Ethernet at lower cost thanother technologies of comparable speed, and will offer a smooth upgradepath for current Ethernet installations. With increased speed of GigabitEthernet data transmission, it is evident that EMI emission and linereflections will cause the transmitted signal to become substantiallyimpaired in the absence of some methodology for filtering thetransmitted data.

[0006] Therefore, there is a need for an integrated transmitter in adata transmission system for pulse shaping digital input data andreducing EMI emissions, implemented with relatively simple circuitry.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

[0007] The aforementioned need in the art for an integrated transmitteris addressed by a transmitter that is power efficient and has reducedelectromagnetic interference (EMI) emissions for unshielded twisted pair(UTP) data communication applications. Transmit data is processed by adigital filter. The digital filter is integrated with a DAC binarydecoder in a memory device such as a read-only memory (ROM) with timemultiplexed output. The digital filter output data is converted to acurrent-mode analog waveform by a digital-to-analog converter (DAC). DACline driver cells are adaptively configurable to operate in either aclass-A or a class-B mode depending on the desired operational modality.A discrete-time analog filter is integrated with the DAC line driver toprovide additional EMI emissions suppression. An adaptive electronictransmission signal cancellation circuit separates transmit data fromreceive data in a bidirectional communication system operating in fullduplex mode. For a multi-transmitter system, timing circuitry staggersthe time base of each transmitter to reduce the aggregate EMI emissionsof the multi-transmitter system.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

[0008] The objects, advantages and features of this invention willbecome more apparent from a consideration of the following detaileddescription and the drawings in which:

[0009]FIG. 1 is a semi-schematic simplified block diagram representationof a local and remote multi-transceiver system, in accordance with thepresent invention;

[0010]FIG. 2 is a semi-schematic, simplified block diagram of atransceiver, adapted for bi-directional communication, in accordancewith the present invention;

[0011]FIG. 3 is a semi-schematic, simplified block diagram of theconfigurable transmit DAC of FIG. 2;

[0012]FIG. 4 is a simplified functional diagram of a ROM including anintegrated digital filter and a DAC decoder;

[0013]FIG. 5 is a simplified block diagram of a multiple ROM embodiment;

[0014]FIG. 6 is a semi-schematic simplified block diagram of a multipleROM embodiment;

[0015]FIG. 7 is a simplified block diagram of a ROM decoder;

[0016]FIG. 8 is a simplified block diagram of a ROM arrangement;

[0017]FIG. 9 is a semi-schematic simplified block diagram of a ROMdecoder and respective timing;

[0018]FIG. 10 is a simplified timing diagram for an integratedtransmitter;

[0019]FIG. 11 is a simplified block diagram of one embodiment of aphase-locked loop;

[0020]FIG. 12A is a semi-schematic block diagram of switch logiccircuitry for controlling operation of a DAC line driver current cellarray;

[0021]FIG. 12B is a semi-schematic simplified block diagram of switchlogic circuitry and a line driver cell for a single current component;

[0022]FIG. 13 is a simplified schematic diagram of a DAC line drivercell, configured to operate in accordance with the present invention;

[0023]FIG. 14A is simplified schematic representation of Class-A switchlogic circuitry;

[0024]FIG. 14B is an exemplary truth table illustrating the operation ofthe Class-A switch circuitry of FIG. 14A;

[0025]FIG. 15A is simplified schematic representation of Class-B switchlogic circuitry;

[0026]FIG. 15B is an exemplary truth table illustrating the operation ofthe Class-B switch circuitry of FIG. 15A;

[0027]FIG. 16 is a simplified block diagram of an analog discrete-timefilter and a line driver cell;

[0028]FIG. 17 is a schematic representation of one implementation of adelay cell;

[0029]FIG. 18 is a simplified timing diagram of a signal before andafter discrete-time filtering;

[0030]FIG. 19 is a semi-schematic block diagram of one implementation ofan analog output filter;

[0031]FIG. 20 is a schematic representation of one implementation of ananalog output filter;

[0032]FIG. 21A is a simplified timing diagram of a signal beforediscrete-time filtering;

[0033]FIG. 21B is a simplified timing diagram of the signal in FIG. 21Aafter discrete-time filtering;

[0034]FIG. 22 is a semi-schematic, simplified block diagram of onearrangement of an integrated transceiver including transmission signalcancellation circuitry and a simplified line interface, in accordancewith the present invention;

[0035]FIG. 23 is a semi-schematic, simplified circuit diagram of oneimplementation of a precision bias current generator for the transmitDAC of FIG. 22;

[0036]FIG. 24 is a semi-schematic, simplified circuit diagram of oneimplementation of a variable bias current generator for the replica DACsof FIG. 22;

[0037]FIG. 25 is a simplified timing diagram illustrating transmissionsignal perturbation of a receive signal and the effects of transmissionsignal cancellation in accordance with the present invention;

[0038]FIG. 26 is a simplified block diagram of multiple transmittersconfigured for reduction of aggregate emissions, in accordance with thepresent invention; and

[0039]FIG. 27 is simplified timing diagram of the image component of afour-transmitter system.

DESCRIPTION

[0040] In many transmission system, the signal to be transmitted over atransmission line is processed and filtered to minimize signaldistortion and Electromagnetic Interference (EMI) emission in thetransmission line. Typically, this wave-shaping and filtering is carriedout digitally for more accuracy. Therefore, the digital signal need tobe converted to an analog signal, for transmission over the UTPtransmission line, using a Digital-to-Analog Converter (DAC).Conventionally, digital signal processing and digital filtering iscarried out separately and then, the “shaped” digital signal isconverted to analog signal.

[0041] Generally, a DAC includes an array of output driver cellscontrolled by a DAC decoder. The DAC decoder generates control wordsresponsive to the digital input. The control word controls each outputdriver cell by turning the current of a respective output driver ON orOFF. An analog signal is generated by connecting all of the outputs ofthe driver cells. This method generally requires additional circuits andspecial logic circuits for implementing the DAC decoder andre-synchronization logic to re-synchronize the bits in a control wordfor driving all of the output driver cells at the same time. Therequirement for these additional circuits becomes even more significantand problematic in an Integrated Chip (IC) where silicon area isexpensive. It would be beneficial, both to circuit performance and tomanufacturing economies, if the digital filter and the DAC decoder in adata transmission system can be integrated in a memory device such as aRead-Only Memory (ROM).

[0042] Furthermore, a conflict arises when it is recognized thatradiative emissions are reduced when a differential signal transmitter,such as an Ethernet transmitter, is transmitting a differential signalin what is termed Class-A mode, i.e., the differential mode currentvaries in order to define the signal, while the common-mode currentcomponent is kept constant.

[0043] However, constant common-mode current compels such circuitry toconduct a constant quanta of current at all times, even when thedifferential mode signal defines a zero value. It is well understoodthat current mode transmitters, outputting a constant common-modecurrent, necessarily consume relatively large amounts of power, causedby constant conduction of the output section. It is further understoodthat in order to minimize constant current conduction and thus powerconsumption, a differential signal system could be operated in what istermed a Class-B mode, i.e., one in which the common-mode current isallowed to vary between some maximum value and zero. However, whenoperating in Class-B mode, the variable common-mode current causes thevery radiative emissions that one would seek to avoid in a high densityinstallation.

[0044] It is beneficial, therefore, both to circuit performance and tomanufacturing economies, if an Ethernet-capable transceiver includes atransmitter or transmit DAC that was adaptively configurable to operateas a cross-standard transmitter platform, as well as being adaptivelyconfigurable between Class-A and Class-B operational modes, depending onthe intended installation. Such a circuit provides the industry with asingle-chip solution having such flexibility that it is able to beincorporated into high density systems where emissions are a problem, aswell as low density systems where power consumption is the greatestconcern. Such a single-chip solution is able to communicate with otherEthernet installations regardless of the communication standard chosen.

[0045] As the number of available communication channels increases, moretransmitters need to be integrated in an IC chip or in a Printed CircuitBoard (PCB). With increasing speed of circuits and clock rates, it isevident that EMI emission will cause the transmitted signal to becomesubstantially impaired in the absence of some methodology to reduce theemission.

[0046] The output spectrum of a differential current-mode transmissionline driver includes signal harmonics radiating from commonly employedtransmission media such as UTP cable. A transmission line driver, evenwith filtering, includes these signal harmonics having substantial powerdensity. The harmonics have images of the baseband signal centeredaround the integer multiple frequencies of the interpolation rate N. Forexample, for an input data rate of 1/T, the harmonics are centeredaround 1*N/T, 2*N/T, 3*N/T. The differential energy produced from theseimages is converted to common-mode energy by the finitedifferential-to-common-mode conversion in the magnetic and UTP medium.The transmitted common-mode energy is the primary source of EMIemissions for data communication applications. These EMI emissions maygenerate crosstalk between system components or cause errors in datatransmission.

[0047] The first set of images around N/T is the highest of the imagesand is the major contributor to EMI emissions. For example, images ofthe baseband signal in 10Base-T transmission medium with a 20 MHztransmission rate and interpolation rate of 8 are centered around 160MHz, 320 MHz, 480 MHz, . . . . The highest image is centered around 160MHz and significant baseband energy is located at 150 MHz and 170 MHz(i.e. 160 MHz+/−10 MHz).

[0048] This EMI emission becomes even more significant and problematicin data transmission systems such as IC chips that integrate severaltransmitters in a single chip. In these applications, a furtherfiltering of the output waveform is required in order to meet theFederal Communications Commission (FCC) emission requirements that limitthe magnitude of signal harmonics which may be radiated by a givenproduct.

[0049] It is known in the art that EMI emissions induced by atransmitter in a data transmission system can be reduced a bycancellation circuit for generating a cancellation signal to produceelectromagnetic fields which are opposites of the fields produced by thetransmitters. This method generally requires additional circuits foradjusting the phase and amplitude of the cancellation signal. Thus, themethod is costly and cumbersome, specially, for data transmissionsystems that include multiple transmitters.

[0050] It would be beneficial, both to circuit performance and tomanufacturing economies, if the EMI emission in a multi-transmittersystem is reduced, without the need for complex and costly cancellationcircuitry. Such EMI reduction can be accommodated by circuitry residenton a multi-transmitter chip or on a multi-transmitter PCB.

[0051] Moreover, it is known in the art that emission induced by atransmission line can be reduced by wave shaping employing digitalfiltering methods. The effectiveness and pulse shaping quality of adigital filter depend on its interpolation rate. However, the higher theinterpolation rate, the more complex the digital filter gets. Thus,utilizing a combination of a simpler digital filter with a lowerinterpolation rate and an analog discrete-time filter, instead of a morecomplex digital filter with twice the interpolation rate of the simplerdigital filter, achieves similar performance resulting in a significantreduction in digital filter complexity and size. In an ICimplementation, the reduction of the interpolation rate of the digitalfilter, results in significant decrease in silicon area and powerconsumption of the transmitter.

[0052] Additionally, the latest high-speed Ethernet protocolscontemplate simultaneous, full bandwidth transmission, in bothdirections (termed full duplex), within a particular frequency band,when it is desirable to maximize transmission speed. However, whenconfigured to transmit in full duplex mode, it is evident that thetransmitter and receiver sections of a transceiver circuit must becoupled together, in parallel fashion, at some transmission nexus shortof twisted pair transmission channel.

[0053] Because of the nexus coupling together of the transmitter andreceiver, it is further evident that the simultaneous assertion of areceive signal and a transmit signal, on the transmission nexus, willcause the receive signal to become substantially impaired or modified inthe absence of some methodology to separate them.

[0054] Standard arrangements for achieving this isolation ortransmit/receive signal separation in the prior art include complexhybrid circuitry provided as a separate element external to anintegrated circuit transceiver chip. Hybrids are generally coupledbetween the transmit/receive signal nexus (the channel) and the transmitand receive signal I/Os. In addition to excess complexity and non-linearresponse, hybrid circuits represent costly, marginally acceptablesolutions to the transmit/receive signal separation issue.

[0055] It would be beneficial, both to circuit performance and tomanufacturing economies, if a local transmit signal is separated from areceive signal, in full duplex operation, without the need for complexand costly hybrid circuitry. Such separation is accommodated bycircuitry resident on an integrated circuit transceiver chip and inrelative proximity to the signals being processed. Such separation isfurther performed in a substantially linear fashion, i.e., frequencyindependent, and be substantially immune to semiconductor processtolerance, power supply and thermal parameter variations.

[0056] The present invention might be aptly described as a system andmethod for an integrated data transmission system for pulse shapingdigital input data, generating synchronized DAC control signals, andreducing EMI emissions in such a way to simplify the complexity ofcircuits and increase the flexibility of the system.

[0057] The invention contemplates a memory device, such as a ROM,including data implementing the functions of a digital filter and thefunctions of a DAC decoder combined. DAC line driver cells areadaptively configurable to operate in either a class-A or a class-B modedepending on the desired operational modality. A discrete-time analogfilter is integrated with the DAC line driver to provide additional EMIemissions suppression. An adaptive electronic transmission signalcancellation circuit separates transmit data from receive data in abidirectional communication system operating in full duplex mode. For amulti-transmitter system, timing circuitry staggers the time base ofeach transmitter to reduce the aggregate EMI emissions of themulti-transmitter system.

[0058]FIG. 1 is a simplified block diagram of a multi-pair communicationsystem that includes an integrated digital filter and DAC decoder (notshown), an adaptively configurable Class-A/Class-B circuitry 10, adiscrete-time analog filter 9, an adaptive transmission signalcancellation circuitry 5, and a staggered timing generator 7 for EMIreduction, according to one embodiment of the present invention. Thecommunication system illustrated in FIG. 1 is represented as apoint-to-point system, in order to simplify the explanation, andincludes two main transceiver blocks 2 and 3, coupled together with fourtwisted-pair cables. Each of the wire pairs is coupled betweenrespective transceiver blocks and each communicates informationdeveloped by respective ones of four transmitter/receiver circuits(constituent transceivers) 6 communicating with a Physical CodingSublayer (PCS) block 8.

[0059] Each transmitter circuit is coupled to a respective wire pairtransmission media. Although FIG. 1 illustrates a single driver circuitcorresponding to a respective twisted wire pair, the illustration issimplified for ease of explanation of the principles of the invention.It should be understood that the transmitter within each transceiver 6represents a multiplicity of differential output cells, the sum of whichdefines the physical signals directed to the transmission medium.

[0060] The functions of a digital filter, a DAC decoder, and are-synchronization logic are combined in a memory device, such as a ROM.The timing generator circuit 7 provides timing references for amultiplexer and the respective control logic for time multiplexing theoutput of the memory device. This allows a transmitter system,constructed according to the present invention, to operate mostefficiently in a reduced circuit complexity and silicon area.

[0061] Adaptively configurable Class-A/Class-B circuitry 10 allows forselective low-power and/or high-speed operation. A selection circuitasserts control signals that adaptively configure each signal componentoutput circuit to operate in Class-A, Class-B, or a combination ofClass-A and Class-B mode.

[0062] An analog discrete-time filter 9 is implemented for reducing EMIemission at the output of the transmitter. In one embodiment, timinggenerator circuit 7 generates timing signals for dividing each digitizedinput data sample into a first time segment and a second time segment. Acontrol logic connected to the output cell generates control signals todrive the output cell to produce half of the current-mode differentialoutput signal for the first time segment and the full current-modedifferential output signal for the second time segment.

[0063] A transmit signal cancellation circuit 5 is electrically coupledto the receive signal path, and develops a cancellation signal, which isan analogue of the transmit signal, and is asserted to the receivesignal path so as to prevent the transmit signal from being superposedon a receive signal at the in-put of the receiver.

[0064] The timing signals for each transmitter are staggered in time forpredetermined time intervals to reduce aggregate electromagneticemission caused by signal images centered around integer multiples offrequency Fi of the four transmitters. Each transmitter circuit iscoupled to a timing generator circuit 7 which provides the requiredtiming for the respective transmitter in accordance with the presentinvention.

[0065]FIG. 2 is a simplified block diagram of one implemenation of atransceiver system, adapted for full-duplex communication, thearrangement of which might be pertinent to an understanding of theprinciples of operation of the present invention. The exemplarytransceiver of FIG. 2 encompasses the physical layer (PHY) portion of atransceiver and is illustrated as including a transmitter section 30 anda receiver section 32, coupled between a media access layer (MAC) 20 anda communication channel; in this case, represented by twisted pairwiring 4, also termed unshielded twisted pair (or UTP) wiring.

[0066] The transceiver of the illustrated embodiment operates inaccordance with a transmission scheme which conforms to the 1000BASE-Tstandard for 1 gigabit per second (Gb/s) Ethernet full-duplexcommunication over four twisted pairs of Category-5 copper cables. Forease of illustration and description, the embodiment of FIG. 2 depictsonly one of the four 250 Mb/s constituent transceivers which areconfigured in parallel fashion and which operate simultaneously toeffect 1 Gb/s in order to effect 1 Gb/s communication. Where signallines are common to all four of the constituent transceivers, they arerendered in a bold line style. Where signal lines were laid to a singletransceiver, they are rendered in a thinner line style.

[0067] Received analog signals are provided to the receiver section 32where they may be pre-conditioned by filter/amplification circuitry 457,such as a high-pass filter (HPF) and programmable gain amplifier (PGA),before being converted to digital signals by a receive analog-to-digitalconverter (ADC) 56 operating, for example, at a sampling rate of about125 MHz. ADC timing is controlled by the output of a timing recoverycircuit 58 which might be configured as a phase-lock-loop (PLL) or someother feed-back controlled circuitry configured for determinableperiodic operation.

[0068] Digital signals, output by the receive ADC 56, along with theoutputs from the receive ADCs (not shown) of the other three constituenttransceivers, are input to a pair-swap multiplexer circuit (MUX) 55which functions to sort out the four input signals from the four ADCsand direct each signal to its respective appropriate demodulator circuitfor demodulation and equalization. Since the coding scheme for gigabitcommunication is based on the premise that signals carried by eachtwisted pair of wire correspond to a 1-dimensional (1D) constellationand that the four twisted wire pairs collectively form a 4-dimensional(4D) constellation, each of the four twisted wire pairs must be uniquelyidentified to a particular one of the four dimensions in order thatdecoding proceed accurately. Any undetected and uncompensated swappingof wire pairs would result in erroneous decoding. The pair swap MUX 55maps the correct input signal to the demodulation circuit 28.

[0069] Demodulator 28 functions to demodulate the receive digital signaland might also provide for channel equalization. Channel equalizationmight suitably include circuitry for compensating theinter-symbol-interference (ISI) induced by partial response pulseshaping circuitry in the transmitter section of a remote gigabit capabletransceiver, which transmitted the analog equivalent of the digitalreceive signal. In addition to ISI compensation, the demodulation alsocompensates for other forms of interference components such as echo,offset and near end cross-talk (NEXT) by subtracting correspondingcancellation vectors from the digital receive signal. In particular, anoffset cancellation circuit 27 generates an estimate of the offsetintroduced at the transceiver's analog front end (including the PGA andADC).

[0070] Three NEXT cancellation circuits, collectively identified as 26,model the near end cross-talk impairments in the receive signal causedby interference between the receive signal and the symbols (signals)sent by the transmitter sections of the other three local constituenttransceivers. Since the NEXT cancellation circuits 26 are coupled to thetransmit signal path, each receiver has access to the data transmittedby the other three local transmitters. Thus, NEXT impairments may bereplicated by suitable filtering. By subtracting the output of the NEXTcancellation circuits 26 from the receive signal, NEXT impairments maybe approximately canceled.

[0071] Following echo, NEXT and offset cancellation, receive signals aredecoded (by a trellis decoder, for example) and provided to a receivePhysical Coding Sublayer (PCS) lock 24 and thence to he media accesslayer (MAC) 20 through a media independent interface circuit (GMII) 23.

[0072] In transmit operations, transmit signals are provided by he MAC20 to a transmit PCS block 22 through a transmit GMII circuit 21. In thecase of gigabit Ethernet transmissions, coded signals might be processedby a partial response pulse shaping circuit (not shown) before beingdirected to a transmit digital-to-analog converter (TXDAC) 29 forconversion into analog signals suitable for transmission over twistedpair wiring 4 to a remote receiving device through line interfacecircuitry 59.

[0073] The exemplary transceiver system of FIG. 2 has been described inthe context of a multi-pair communication system operating inconformance with the IEEE 802.3 standard (also termed 1000BASE-T) for 1gigabit Ethernet full-duplex communication over Category-5 twisted pairwiring. However, and in accordance with the present invention, theexemplary transceiver is further configurable for operation inconjunction with 10BASE-T, 100BASE-T and 100BASE-Tx performancestandards. In particular, the transmitter 29 is configurable toaccommodate both 1.0 volt output swings characteristic of Tx and the 2.5volt output swings characteristic of 10BASE-T operation.

[0074] Bidirectional analog signals are transmitted to and received froma 2-wire transmission channel 4 through line interface circuitry 59. Inthe illustrated transceiver system of FIG. 2, both the transmitter 30and receiver 32 are coupled to the transmission channel 4 through theline interface circuitry 59 such that there is a bidirectional signalpath between the transceiver and the interface circuit 59. Thisbidirectional signal path splits into a receive signal path and atransmit signal path at a nexus point 64, at which point both transmitand receive signals are present during full duplex operation. Transmitsignals, present on the nexus 64, are isolated from the receive ADC 56by a transmit signal cancellation circuit 5 which is coupled between thebidirectional signal nexus and the receiver's analog front end.

[0075] In a manner to be described in greater detail below, transmitsignal cancellation circuitry 5 functions to evaluate signals appearingon the receive signal line and condition those signals such that anytransmit signal components are removed from the receive signal lineprior to the receive signal's introduction to the analog front end andthe receive ADC 56. Further, such conditioning does not perturb anycomponents of the transmit signal prior to the signal's introduction tothe channel. Transmit signal cancellation circuitry 5 is connected toreceive, and is operatively responsive to, the digital transmissionsignal directed to the transmit DAC 29 by the pulse shaper 22. Since thecancellation circuit 5 operates in response to the same digitaltransmission signal as a transmit DAC 29, the cancellation circuit 5 isable to develop a conditioning or cancellation signal whichsubstantially directly corresponds to the analog transmission signalproduced by a transceiver's transmit DAC.

[0076] In general terms, any analog intelligence signal, whether inbaseband or passband, may be processed by the cancellation circuit 5 forfull duplex communication over any transmission channel. However, theintelligence signal characteristics are effectively canceled at theinputs of the receive ADC 56 such that full duplex communication canoccur without a transmitter's intelligence-signal swamping a receivesignal that might have been communicated over a generally lossy channel,characterized by a relatively poor noise margin or signal-to-noise ratio(SNR). The transmit intelligence signal is conditioned prior to itsbeing directed to the transmission channel, thus allowing the system tooperate on a cleaner signal, resulting in a cleaner, more effective andprecise signal suppression characteristic at the receive end of thenexus.

[0077] In other words, the cancellation circuit 5 is positioned at anexus junction of a bi-directional transceiver's transmit block, receiveblock and transmission channel buffer circuitry, as represented by aline interface circuit. The cancellation circuit operates upon transmitsignals appearing on the nexus so as to allow substantially unperturbedpassage of analog transmit signals to the channel side of the nexus,while restricting passage of analog transmit signals to the receive sideof the nexus such that receive signals can be processed by the analogfront end unimpaired by superposed components of transmit signals.

[0078] Timing circuit 7 generates the required timing for the pluralityof transmitters. In a manner to be described in greater detail below,each transmitter 29 is constructed to include a digital-to-analogconverter (DAC) with an array of output driver cells, with individualcells making up the array able to be adaptively included or excludedfrom operation in order to define a variety of characteristic outputvoltage swings. The individual output driver cells are controlled by aDAC decoder. Responsive to the value of the digital input, the DACdecoder generates a DAC control word that controls which sets of outputcells are turned on and which sets are turned off.

[0079] The output current of the DAC is generated by an array ofidentical line driver cells, each with respective driver controls comingfrom a DAC decoder. For each value of the digital input, the DAC decodergenerates a control word. Depending on the DAC control words, thesedriver cells are either turned on or turned off. For each digitizedsample of the input, the output currents of all the line driver cellsare added together to produce an analog representation of the digitalinput. The number of line driver cells is chosen to meet the resolutionrequirement of the DAC. Each line driver cell has high output impedance,such that the transmit output impedance of the transmitter is determinedby an external resistor. All driver cells have topologically identicalcircuit design, so each transmitter line driver can achieve accurate andlinear output current levels.

[0080]FIG. 3 shows one embodiment of a transmitter 29 architecture. Thetransmitter includes an interpolating digital filtering function forpulse shaping of the transmit signal to reduce the EMI emission causedby the transmission line. Pulse shaping includes modification of asignal spectrum by educing the sharp edges of the signal and iseffective in lowering EMI emissions within a transmission system. A DAC(not shown as a separate block) converts the filtered digital output toan analog signal current.

[0081] Input digital data is fed to an interpolating digital filter 33.The filtered data then goes to a DAC binary decoder 34, which producesthe DAC control words. Each bit in a control word controls an outputdriver cell by turning the current cell ON or OFF. The control words aredirected to DAC current-mode line driver array 36 which includes anumber of output driver cells. The outputs of all the current cells areadded together to create the output analog signal. The number of drivercells is determined by the desired resolution of the DAC. Theinterpolating function of the digital filter 33 is integrated with thebinary decoding function in a memory device, such as ROM 31. In otherwords, the functions of the digital filter and the DAC decoder areimplemented as part of the ROM content. This ROM replaces digitalfiltering circuits, DAC decoding logic, and re-synchronization logic.When implemented in such manner, the logical implementation and memoryreplaces digital filtering circuits, DAC decoding logic circuit andre-synchronization logic circuits that are conventionally implemented inhardware. Thus, the hardware functionality of these circuits is renderedinto arithmetic form and implemented in a memory device.

[0082] The output data of the ROM (filtered and decoded data) isselected by a multiplexer 35 that is synchronized employing a timereference 7. Re-synchronization logic that is usually needed at theoutput of a DAC decoder and is generally integrated with a DAC linedriver in the art of DAC design is no longer needed because the DACdecoding function is performed in the ROM and is subsequentlysynchronized by the multiplexer 35. A stable and well-controlled timingreference 7 generates the control clocks and timing delays to thevarious blocks from a master clock.

[0083] The output of the multiplexer is further filtered by adiscrete-time analog filter 9. The discrete-time analog filter isintegrated with the DAC line driver array 36 to suppress high-frequencyharmonics of the output transmit signal. Depending on the output of themultiplexer, a selected number of current drivers in the line driverarray 36 are turned on to produce a current corresponding to the valueof the filtered digital input signal. The line driver array produces adifferential current output that drives the UTP line load. The linedriver array 36 can be controlled for a power efficient operation usingthe adaptively configurable class-A/class-B circuit. In one embodimentof the present invention, an analog output filter 37 further processesthe output signal from the line driver for smoother edges to furtherreduce the EMI emissions.

[0084] In one embodiment, the digital filter 33 is a Finite ImpulseResponse (FIR) filter. The output of a FIR filter is a weighted sum ofthe present and past input samples only, and is not a function of theoutput. To perform an interpolation function for wave shaping of thetransmit signal, a weighted sum of the present and past input signals iscalculated to produce the output of the filter. The weighted sum isdetermined by selection of filter coefficients. The order of theprevious inputs that are taken into account for determining a presentoutput is called the order of the filter.

[0085]FIG. 4 shows a functional diagram of the ROM 31 including thedigital filter 33 and DAC decoder 34. The digital filter function ispartitioned into N smaller digital filters 46 a-46 h which operate atthe input data rate 1/T but are staggered by 1/Nth of the data period.In other words, with an interpolation rate N of eight, there are eightsmaller digital filters. Each smaller filter is essentially a smallerROM. Conceptually, the input data goes to two shift registers 41, 42 foran exemplary second order filter. For each smaller filter, therespective previous input data strings are multiplied by the respectivefilter coefficients CO-C15 and then added to generate the output foreach smaller filter. The outputs of the smaller filters are fed to arespective DAC decoder 43 a-43 h. For example, in filter #0, the datastrings are multiplied by the coefficients C0 and C8 and added beforegoing to the DAC decoder 43 a. Inside the ROM, the shift registers andthe digital filters become selection circuits for selecting therespective ROM word. In one embodiment, the interpolation of the digitalsignal is performed by a functional twenty four order filter,implemented by eight functional third-order filters in a ROM includingthree shift registers.

[0086] Referring back to FIG. 4, the eight outputs of the digitalfilters 26 a-26 h are processed by eight binary decoders 43 a-43 h,which convert the outputs to DAC control words 47 a-47 h. The 8-to-1multiplexer 35 selects one of the DAC control words at 8 times the datarate so, the multiplexer output rate is 8/T. For the example in FIG. 4,in 10Base-T, N is 8 and the DAC control word rate is 8 times. 20 MHz or160 MHz. The timing between the multiplexer selection control 45 anddigital filter operation allows sufficient settling time for each filterand decoder combination.

[0087] For other interpolation rates N, there are N digital filters andN binary decoders to produce N control words. An N-to-1 multiplexerselects control words at N times the data rate to provide a multiplexeroutput rate of N/T.

[0088] The selection control and ordering of the digital filters followsa Gray code ordering which prevents glitches in the DAC control wordbecause the selection only allows transitions to the proper subsequentfilter. A Gray code is a binary code in which sequential numbers arerepresented by binary expressions, each of which differs from thepreceding expression in one place only. In addition, the Gray codedselection control has the feature that no control bit lines are requiredto operate higher than half the multiplexer selection rate, i.e.,0.5*N/T. Since the DAC control word is synchronized by the multiplexercontrol selection, a bank of re-synchronization latches is not needed inthe DAC. The eight filters in FIG. 4 are pictorially arranged toillustrate a Gray coding selection by the multiplexer 35.

[0089] The input data rate of the digital filter 33 is 1/T where T is,for example, 40 ns for 100Base-T4 and 50 ns for 10Base-T Ethernetcommunication lines. The input data is interpolated by the rate N. Theinterpolating digital filter produces output samples at N/T. Thecoefficients of the filter are chosen to meet the pulse shaperequirement of the particular communication application. For example, in10Base-T, the coefficients follow a linear filter which produces a 100%raised cosine response after it has been filtered by a 100 meter UTPline model. In 100Base-T4, the coefficients follow a linear filter whichproduces a 100% raised cosine response after it has been filtered by athird order Butterworth filter.

[0090] The digital filter is designed to meet the input signalrequirements of a particular communication line. The coefficients of thefilter are chosen by looking backwards to determine what values for thefilter coefficients would produce the desired output signal. Forexample, a 100% raised cosine response is required in one embodiment fora 10Base-T transmission line and the filter coefficients are selectedbased on the transfer function of the transmission line and the requiredoutput. The filter results are then saved in a ROM as look up tables. Inother words, the coefficients are used to determine the content of theROM. The DAC decoder function is integrated and saved in the same lookuptable in the ROM, along with the coefficients of the digitalinterpolating filter. As a result, every word of the ROM includes allthe functions for computing the filter output as well as all thefunctions for decoding the DAC. This technique not only eliminates theneed for a separate digital filter circuit, but also eliminates the needto re-synchronize the output of the DAC decoder before it goes to a DACdriver cell.

[0091] A phase-locked loop (PLL) is used to generate the required timingsignals (time reference 7) for outputting the right data at the righttime from the ROM. A transmitter that supports multiple communicationapplications such as a 10Base-T, 100Base-T4/TX/T2, or 1000Base-Tproduct, requires different digital filtering (e.g., different valuesfor the filter coefficients). Thus, multiple smaller ROMs (digitalfilters) are implemented, but only the output from the appropriatesmaller ROM is selected by using a transmission mode control signal.FIG. 5 shows an exemplary embodiment for 10Base-T, 100Base-TX, and1000Base-T communication modes. Depending on the transmission mode, amode select control selects one of the three smaller ROMs 51, 52, or 53,and the output of the selected ROM goes to the multiplexer. The twoother smaller ROMs that are not selected are inactive and thusdisconnected from the output line.

[0092] There are as many rows in each smaller ROM as there are bits inthe ROM word. For example, a ROM word of j bits has j rows. Also, thereare i words stored in each smaller ROM. Referring now to FIG. 6, whenthe 10Base-T mode is selected, ROM 51 is active and ROMs 52 and 953 areinactive and disconnected from the output line. Specifically, all theMOSFETs, Mbij and Mcij, are off and thus are floating. Depending on thecontent of the ROM 51, the 10Base-T control 61 may turn on one of theMOSFETs Mall-Mali in row 1, resulting in a low logic level at theoutput. The MOSFETs in other rows of the ROM would be open or closedaccordingly as required by the ROM word.

[0093]FIG. 7 illustrates one embodiment of the ROM control logic for athree-tap filter implementation. The input data is shifted by threeshift registers 71, 72, and 73 that are clocked by PHI1-running at 40MHz to produce the ROM control signals Q0, Q1, and Q2. However, threemore shift registers 72, 74, and 76 that are clocked by PHI1B (PHI1inverted) are used to generate three more ROM control signals Q0 d, Q1d, and Q2 d. These two sets of ROM control signals, one set delayed intime, are used to generate the two halves of a ROM word at two differenttimes. This technique ensures that there is sufficient time for settlingof the ROM data at the input of the multiplexer 35.

[0094] Each smaller ROM included in the ROM 31 can be organized asseveral ROM arrays, each ROM array having a different timing foroutputting the ROM data. As shown in FIG. 8, each smaller ROM is dividedinto two ROM arrays. The first ROM array contains data cells for thefirst half of each ROM word (O(0-3)) and is controlled by the ROMdecoder 81 that uses Q0-Q2 control signals. The second ROM arraycontains data cells for the second half of each ROM word (O(4-7)) and iscontrolled by the ROM decoder 82 that uses Q0 d-Q2 d control signals.Thus, O(0-3) are synchronized to PHI1 and O(4-7) are synchronized toPHI1B to ensure sufficient data settling time. The 8-to-1 multiplexer 35selects each of the ROM word bits O(0-7) based on a Gray code orderingto ensure further integrity of the signals going to the DAC decoder.

[0095] A block diagram of an exemplary ROM decoder and timing signalsfor a two bit input data for each transmitter is depicted in FIG. 9. Twoclock phases CK0 and CK4 and their inversions CK0B and CK4B aregenerated from a PLL (shown in FIG. 11). These clock phases are bufferedby an input clock buffer 91 before they are fed to an FIR clockgenerator 92. Based on clock phases MCKO and its inversion MCK)B, andMCK4 and its inversion MCK4B, the clock signals PHI1 and PHI13 aregenerated by the clock generator 92. The clock signals PHI1 and PHI1Bare used by the register 93 to generate Q0-2 and Q0 d-2 d ROM controlsignals. These control signals are hen fed to the ROM 31.

[0096] The timing diagram of the ROM 31 and the multiplexer 35, for aninterpolation rate of eight, is shown in FIG. 10. The clock signal PHI1is generated from clock phase MCKO and is used to clock the input datato produce Q0-2 ROM control signals. PHI1B, the inversion of PHI1, isused to clock the input data to generate Q0 d-2 d ROM control signals.The ROM control signals Q0-2 are used to generate ROM outputs O(0-3) andQ0 d-2 d are used to generate ROM outputs O(4-1). Multiplexer selectsignals SEL0-2, following a Gray coding scheme, are used to multiplexthe ROM outputs at eight times the frequency of the MCK0.

[0097] The timing signals can be accurately generated by timinggenerator circuit, such as a PLL that includes a Voltage ControlOscillator (VCO). When a PLL is used as a frequency synthesizer, the VCOis divided down to a reference frequency that is locked to a frequencyderived from an accurate source such as a crystal oscillator. FIG. 11shows a PLL used for generating the required timing signals for oneembodiment of the present invention. Phase detector 111 produces twoperiodic output signals as a function of the difference in thefrequencies of its two input clocks. These two outputs are fed to acharge pump 112. The output of the charge pump 112 has a tri-statecapability. Depending on which input is turned on, the output of thecharge pump is a positive current source, negative current source, or anopen circuit.

[0098] A filter 113 filters the high frequency components of the outputof the charge pump before it is inputted to a VCO 114, in order to keepthe VCO stable. The output of the VCO is divided by five (115) such thatit locks to the crystal oscillator before it is fed back to the phasedetector 111 as its first input. The second input of the phase detectoris driven by a master clock. This way, clock signals at a multiple ofthe master clock are created. Selection and ordering of the DAC decoderoutput through the MUX follows a Gray-code selection criteria whichprevents glitches in developed DAC control words because the selectioncriteria only allows transitions to proper decoder outputs.

[0099]FIG. 12A is a semi-schematic block diagrammatic representation ofClass-A/B switch logic circuitry 120, suitable for receiving a DACcontrol word and generating a plurality of line driver cell controlsignals, each set of control signals corresponding to a particular oneof individual line driver cells making up a line driver array. DACcontrol words control operation of a Class-A/B switch logic circuit 120which, in turn, provides activation signals to individual line drivercells making up a line driver array 122. Characteristically, the outputcurrent of a DAC is generated by an array of identical line driver cellswhich are turned-on or turned-off depending on the state of a particularDAC control word. For each input sample, output currents of all of theactive line driver cells are added together at a summing junction toproduce an analog representation of the original digital input. Controlof individual driver cells and their operational mode (Class-A/B) isdetermined by “select” signals provided to the Class-A/B switch logiccircuit 120. Necessarily, the number of the individual line driver cellsimplemented and their characteristic operational mode is chosen in orderto meet the resolution requirements of the DAC as defined by thetransmission standard.

[0100] For a transmitter that supports multiple communication standardssuch as 10BASE-T, 100BASE-T4/Tx/T2, 1000BASE-T, and the like, the numberof individual driver cells making up the driver array will depend on themaximum, worst-case output voltage swing required by the transmissionstandards. In the exemplary embodiment, there are twenty-five individualcurrent driver cells, each outputting a particular current quanta andfor purposes of this specification, will be deemed normalized such thateach of the twenty-five cells might be termed “full” cells. In addition,the line driver array 122 includes a “half” cell, so defined because thecurrent quanta produced by that cell exhibits a value one-half the valueof the current quanta output by the twenty-five “full” cells.Accordingly, depending upon the actual value of the current quanta andthe load across which the output current is developed, full value outputswings can be developed by the transmitter of the present invention infifty equal-sized “half” steps by switching various combinations of“full” cells and the “half” cell into operation.

[0101] For example, in normal 10BASE-T operation, the output voltageswing defined by the standard is 2.5 volts. In order to accommodate thisoutput voltage swing, all twenty-five cells, plus the “half” cell areused to develop the output. It will be understood by those having skillin the are that each of the twenty-five “full” cells develops a currentsufficient to develop 0.10 volts across a load, with the “half” cellproviding an additional degree of granularity to the output. Conversely,in 100BASE-Tx mode, the standard defines a 1.0 volt output swing. Withdriver cells configured to each develop 0.10 volts across a load, onlyten cells are required from the line driver array in order toaccommodate this output swing.

[0102] In FIG. 12A, the switch logic circuit 120 includes twenty-sixClass-A/B control circuits 122 each of which defines whether theirrespective line driver cell is operable or non-operable and, ifoperable, whether each corresponding driver cell outputs a differentialcurrent in Class-A or Class-B mode. Each of the Class-A/B controlcircuits 122 defines four output signals a, b, c and d which, in amanner to be described further below, controls both operation and modeof each line driver cell. Control signals are asserted by each of thecontrol circuits 122 in accordance with a select signal (SEL) assertedby the timing reference 7 of FIG. 3.

[0103] Turning now to FIG. 12B, in one embodiment of the presentinvention, each current drive cell 126 is able to be controlled foreither Class-A, Class-B, or a combination of Class-A and Class-Boperation by selecting control signals a, b, c and d from either aClass-A driver control logic circuit 123 or a Class-B driver controllogic circuit 124 by a 2:1 MUX 125. Determination of whether the linedriver cell will be driven in Class-A or Class-B mode is made by aselect signal that determines which of the control signals (a, b, c andd) will be selected by the MUX 125. Further, determination of the binarystate of the control signals (a, b, c and d) is made by two inputsignals In0 and In1 which make up that portion of the DAC control worddirected to that particular corresponding Class-A/B switch logicsection. An exemplary adaptively configurable Class-A/Class-B circuit isdescribed in detail below.

[0104] It should be noted here that the DAC decoder 34 (FIG. 3) willnecessarily have as many outputs as there are individual line drivercells to be driven, i.e., the output of the DAC decoder is 26 wide inthe exemplary embodiment. Thus, the DAC decoder is capable of providingtwenty-six pairs of In0 and In1 control signals; one pair directed toeach switch logic and line driver cell combination.

[0105] Turning now to FIG. 13, an exemplary embodiment of an individualline driver cell is indicated generally at 126. In general terms, theline driver cell 126 might be aptly described as two differential pairscross-coupled to define a differential output (I_(p)I_(n)). Currentflowing through each of the differential pairs is defined by twon-channel current source transistors 131 and. 132 each of which havetheir gate terminals coupled to a stable bias voltage developed by ann-channel transistor 133 configured as a voltage follower. The biasvoltage generated by the MOSFET diode transistor 133 is determined bythe characteristic value of a current source 138 which provides a stablecurrent reference to the MOSFET diode transistor 133 such that a stablebias voltage is developed on its gate terminal.

[0106] As is well understood in the art, the current source transistors131 and 132 conduct a characteristic current which is proportional tothe current developed by the current source 138, with theproportionality constant being determined by the area ratios of thecurrent source transistor with respect to the MOSFET diode transistor133. As the term is used herein, “area ratio” refers to the well-knowntransistor width/length (W/L) ratio.

[0107] Operationally, differential output currents are developed by thedifferential pairs in response to control inputs a, b, c and d, eachdriving the gate terminal of a respective n-channel transistor 134, 135,136, and 137 configured as switches. N-channel switch transistor controlthe output current operation of the driver cell and determine the quantaof current defining the differential outputs.

[0108] For example, for matched current sources 131 and 132, eachconducting a characteristic current I, when control signals a and c arein a state so as to turn on corresponding switch transistors 134 and136, while control signals b and d are in a state so as to maintainswitch transistors 135 and 137 in an off condition, the IP output modewill define a current equal to 2×I, while I_(n) is equal to 0. Othercombinations will immediately suggest themselves to one having skill inthe art and can be easily determinable by merely turning the variousswitch transistors on or off along a programmed sequence until allpossible binary combinations of control signals states have beenexhausted. Thus, transistors 134, 135, 136, and 137, configured asswitches, control the output current operation of the line driver cellgenerated by the current sources.

[0109] As noted above, each individual current driver cell can becontrolled for either Class-A, Class-B or a combination of Class-A andClass-B operation by operation of the Class-A and Class-B driver controllogic circuitry 123 and 124 of FIG. 12B. With reference to the currentdriver cell 126 of FIG. 13, Class-A and Class-B operation of the drivercell will now be described in connection with the following Table 1 andTable 2.

[0110] In particular, Class-A operation of the line driver current cellis characterized by a constant common output current, without regard tothe actual value of the differential output current of the cell. TABLE 1OUTPUT SIGNALS INPUT SIGNALS Diff. Com. a b c d Ip In Mode Mode 1 0 0 11.0*I 1.0*I 0 2.0*I 1 0 1 1 1.5*I 0.5*I  1.0*I 2.0*I 1 0 1 0 2.0*I 0 2.0*I 2.0*I 1 1 0 1 0.5*I 1.5*I −1.0*I 2.0*I 0 1 0 1 0 2.0*I −2.0*I2.0*I

[0111] As illustrated in Table 1, given the particular binary states ofthe control signals a, b, c and d, the common output current is seen tohave a constant value equal to 2.0*I. For example, when control signalsa and d are high while control signals b and c are low, thecorresponding switch transistors 134 and 137 are both in the on state,causing them each to conduct the full value I of the current generatedby the respective current sources 131 and 132. Accordingly, the outputsIp and In each take on a value of 1.0*I.

[0112] As illustrated in the second row of Table 1, when control signalc is taken high, thus turning on the second switch transistor 136 of thecorresponding differential pair, each of the transistors of the pairconduct one-half of the current I defined by the respective currentsource transistor (in this case, transistor 132). Thus, I_(n) exhibits avalue of 0.5*I, while the additional 0.5*I conducted by its mate in thepair is a reflected in the value of I_(p). Thus, I_(p) exhibits a valueof 1.5*I. The remaining combinations of binary states of the controlsignals a, b, c, and d necessary to maintain a common output currentvalue of 2.01*I will be evident to those having skill in the art uponexamination of the remaining entries with Table 1. Since the outputcurrents (I_(p) and I_(n)) may take on only five values (0, 0.5*I,1.0*I, 1.5I and 0.5*I and 2.0*I), all that remains is to ensure that theabsolute value sum of the two currents is equal to, in this case, 2.0*I.As illustrated in Table 1, the algebraic sums of the −29currents definefive particular values of differential output current, i.e., −2.0*I,−1.0*I, 0, 1.0*1 and 2.0*I as is expected.

[0113] Accordingly, a Class-A operated driver cell will be expected tohave low EMI emissions but consume a relatively higher amount of powerdue to the constant common mode output signal. In Class-B operation,however, the driver cell can be operated to produce the same degree ofvarying differential current output signals but with a varyingcommon-mode current output. In Class-B operation, power consumption issignificantly reduced at the expense of higher radiative emissions dueto the varying common-mode output current as illustrated in thefollowing Table 2. TABLE 2 OUTPUT SIGNALS INPUT SIGNALS Diff. Com. a b cd Ip In Mode Mode 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1.0*I 0  1.0*I 1.0*I 1 0 1 02.0*I 0  2.0*I 2.0*I 0 0 0 1 0 1.0*I −1.0*I 1.0*I 0 1 0 1 0 2.0*I −2.0*I2.0*I

[0114] In one particular embodiment, such as might be implemented in atransceiver as depicted in FIG. 2, Class-A and Class-B logic circuits(123 and 124 of FIG. 12B) might be implemented to output control signalsa, b, c and d which define a truncated set of the differential andcommon-mode output currents illustrated in Tables 1 and 2, above. Asillustrated in FIG. 12B, the DAC control word outputs a pair of controlsignals In0 and In1 for each logic circuit and line driver cellcombination. Necessarily, each control pair of the DAC word is able totake on only four binary values (0:0, 0:1, 1:0 and 1:1).

[0115]FIG. 14A is a simplified schematic diagram of one particularimplementation of a Class-A logic circuit connected to receive an inputcontrol pair from the DAC word and generate the four driver controlsignals. FIG. 14B illustrates the corresponding logic table for derivinga, b, c and d control signals In0 and In1 in Class-A operation. TheClass-A logic circuit, indicated generally at 123, is characterized bymirror image circuits, each including a cross-coupled pair of two-inputNOR gates. The output of each NOR gate is buffered by an invertercircuit as are the DAC word control pair inputs. As illustrated in FIG.14A, each of the two input NOR gates has its cross-coupled inputconnected through a delay element ΔT which functions to prevent theoutputs of each mirror-image circuit from being at a logic low at thesame time.

[0116] As illustrated in the logic table of FIG. 14B, the DAC controlpair In0 and In1 takes on three binary values, i.e., 1:1, 0:1 and 1:0.For the first input value (1:1), only one switch transistor of eachdifferential pair of the driver cell of FIG. 13 is in operation. Thus,both I_(p) and I_(n) are at a value of 1.0*I, the differential modecurrent is 0 and the common-mode current is 2.0*I. In the next inputbinary state, i.e., 0:1, a and c activate their respective switchtransistors causing the I_(p) output to equal 2.0*I. Since b and d arelow, their respective switch transistors are off and In conducts nocurrent. Thus, the differential output current is 2.0*I and thecommon-mode output current is again 2.0*I. Conversely, when the binaryvalue of the DAC control pair is flipped from the previous state, i.e.,1:0, it will be understood that b and d cause their respective switchtransistors 135 and 137 to conduct while the previous conduction pair134 and 136 are off. Thus, In conducts 2.0*I while Ip conducts 0current. The differential current is thus −2.0*I while the common-modecurrent is again 2.0*I.

[0117]FIG. 15A is a simplified schematic diagram of a logic circuitadapted to take a DAC control word pair and develop the four controlsignals a, b, c and d in a manner suitable for operating the driver cellof FIG. 13 in Class-B mode. FIG. 15B is the corresponding logic tablefor deriving a, b, c and d control signals from In0 and In1 in a Class-Boperational mode. As depicted in FIG. 15A, In0 and In1 are bufferedthrough inverter circuits to generate a, c and b, d, respectively.

[0118] The corresponding Class-B logic table in FIG. 15B illustrates thelogical states of the four driver control signals, the respective Ip andIn output drive by the driver cell in response to the control signals,the differential output current and common-mode output current withrespect to the same binary values of the DAC control pair (1:1, 0:1 and1:0) as was the case with FIG. 14B above. From the three inputconditions, it will be seen that only the first, i.e., 1:1, gives adifferent result from the Class-A case described above. The remainingtwo input conditions, i.e., 0:1 and 1:0, result in the same differentialmode and common-mode output current. In the first case, however, all ofthe four driver cell control signals are 0, thereby defining adifferential output current of 0 but with a corresponding common-modecurrent of 0 as well.

[0119] In accordance with the present invention, current driver cellcontrol signals can be adaptively determined by Class-A and Class-Blogic circuits in order to choose a driver cell's operational mode inorder to meet conflicting requirements of power efficiency and reducedEMI emissions. In order to achieve the highest value of powerefficiency, i.e., lowest power consumption, all of the current drivercells would be expected to be placed in Class-B operational mode.Conversely., for the lowest EMI emissions configuration, it would beexpected that all of the current driver cells would be configured tooperate in Class-A mode. In typical application conditions, atransceiver's transmit DAC would be expected to have its current drivercells operating in mixed Class-A/B mode. For example, in nominal 13ASE-Toperation, approximately 40 percent of the cells (ten cells) would beconfigured to operate in Class-B mode, while 60 percent of the cells(fifteen cells) would be configured to operate in Class-A mode. If thetransceiver were anticipated to operate according to the Tx standard,i.e., 1.0 volt swings, ten of the cells would be typically configured tooperate in Class-A mode while the remaining fifteen cells would bedisabled.

[0120] Disabling a particular cell would only require that that cell beplaced in Class-B operational mode and the DAC control word pair (In0and In1) would be set at a binary value so as to put all of the drivercell control signals a, b, c and d in a low state. In the exemplaryembodiment, In0 and In1 would be asserted as 1:1. Once all of thecurrent cell control signals are in a low state, the correspondingcurrent cell conducts no current, effectively disabling that cell.

[0121] It should be noted that the current driver cells aretopologically identical, thus the same current cell is used whether thesystem is in Class-A or Class-B operational modes. There is therefore noincompatibility between Class-A and Class-B outputs. Further, it shouldbe understood that any number of current driver cells can be configuredto operate in Class-A or Class-B modes by merely programming a controlPLA to issue the appropriate select signals to the transmitter. Thedriver cells are therefore fully adjustable and the mix of Class-A andClass-B modes will depend solely on the application desired for thetransceiver. For example, notebook computer applications have a greatdeal of sensitivity toward power consumption while relegating EMIemissions to a secondary consideration. Since notebook computers arebattery operated and have a limited power supply lifetime, a transceiveroperating in such an environment would be configured to operateprimarily in Class-B mode.

[0122] Conversely, in an enterprise application, such as a wiringcloset, the transceiver would be configured to operate primarily inClass-A mode in order to reduce EMI emissions. Power consumptionconsiderations are typically secondary in such applications.

[0123] A transmitter constructed according to the adaptivelyconfigurable Class-A/Class-B circuitry is further advantageous in thatthe same DAC control word (In0 and In1) is used to define thedifferential signal output in both the Class-A and the Class-B modes, asillustrated in FIGS. 14B and 15B. Since the same current cell is used inboth cases, and since the DAC control word remains the same, the systemis inherently seamless as a cross-mode platform. No complex decisionlogic, or multiple DAC decoder architectures are required.

[0124] To reduce the undesirable harmonics of the output signal, ananalog discrete-time filter 9 is integrated with the DAC line driver 36in addition to the interpolating digital filter 33 as shown in FIG. 3.Referring now to FIG. 16, each DAC line driver cell 126 is capable ofproducing ½ the differential output current signal as well as the fulldifferential output current signal. The full differential output currentis generated by certain combinations of the class-A/class-B controlsignals a, b, c, and d as shown in rows 3, and 5 of table 1 and rows 3,and 5 of table 2. The half differential output current is generated bycertain combinations of the class-A/class-B control signals a, b, c, andd as shown in rows 2 and 4 of table 1 and rows 2, and 4 of table 2. Thecontrol signals a, b, c, and d are derived from the ROM 31 outputsignals.

[0125] For each output sample, the line driver control logic 162 drivesthe driver cells such that for the first segment of the drive period 166of TIN, the cell produces ½ the differential output current signal 165.For the second segment of the drive period of TIN, the cell is driven bythe line driver control logic 162 to produce the full differentialoutput current signal 164. In one embodiment of the present invention,the delay cell 161 generates the two segments of the drive period.

[0126]FIG. 17 shows one implementation of the delay cell 161. Aninverter is formed at the input stage by MP1 and MN1 MOSFETs. Thecurrent through this inverter is limited by MOSFETs MPO and MNO biasedby BIASP and BIASN, respectively. This limited supply current slows downthe inverter. A capacitance is formed by the two MOSFETS MP2 and MN2 tofurther delay the output of the input stage inverter. The delayed outputof the input inverter, is then inverted by MN3 and MP3 MOSFETS to formthe OUT signal. The line driver control logic 162 utilizes an accuratetime reference such as a time-accurate delay circuitry 161 or a PLL,such as the one shown in FIG. 11, to drive the line driver cell 126 toeither its full amplitude or half of its full amplitude. The currentsfor each line driver cell 126 are added at node 163 to generate theoutput signal of the transmitter. In a preferred embodiment, the firsttime segment and the second time segment are equal to T/2. As a result,the analog discrete-time filter applies nulls to the output spectrum atodd multiples of the interpolation rate, i.e., NIT, 3*N/T, 5*N/T . . . .The first null reduces the image energy around NIT thus providingsignificant reduction in EMI emissions. For a 20 MHZ digital data inputrate and an interpolation rate of eight, the first harmonic at the DACoutput is at 160 MHZ. This can be represented by a sinusoid:A=Sin(2π.160 MHZ. t). After the discrete time filtering at every T/2(i.e., 3.125 ns), the first harmonic is represented by a summation oftwo sinusoidal signals: A′=½ Sin(2π.160 MHZ. t)+½ Sin(2π.160 MHZ.(t+3.125 ns)). After expanding this equation, all the terms cancel outeach other, resulting in a null signal. However, for even multiples of160 MHZ (NIT) (e.g., 320 MHZ), the terms do no cancel out each other.

[0127]FIG. 18 depicts a magnified view of signal 181 (the dotted lines)and signal 182 (solid lines) that the result of performing the analogdiscrete time filtering on the signal 181. As displayed by signal 182 inFIG. 18, the effective result achieved by discrete-time filtering ofsignal 181 is similar to interpolation or over-sampling by 2 by adigital filter. However, this technique is performed with less circuitcomplexity which results in reduced silicon area and lower cost.

[0128]FIG. 21A shows an example of a 10Base-T sinusoidal input signalrunning at 10 MHZ. The resulting discrete-time filtered signal is shownin FIG. 21B that has smoother edges resulting in a reduction of EMIemission.

[0129] As illustrated in FIG. 19, in one embodiment, a pair ofcapacitors, C1 and C2, are added to the outputs of the line driver 36 in10Base-T mode to provide additional high frequency filtering. Thecapacitors can be either external (discrete) capacitors or on-chipcapacitors as shown in FIG. 20. Each integrated capacitors of FIG. 20 isformed by connecting the sources and drains of the respective MOSFET 191or 192 together to form the bottom plate of each respective capacitor. Aresistor (192 or 194) is connected in parallel across each formedcapacitor as shown in FIG. 20. The top plate of each capacitor in FIG.19 and FIG. 20 is connected to one of the two differential DAC outputs,respectively.

[0130] A MOSFET switch (193 or 196) is connected to the bottom plate ofeach capacitor and ground (VSS). A control signal, 10Base-T mode,controls switch 193 and switch 196. In 10Base-T mode, the switches areturned on connecting the bottom plate of each capacitor to ground (VSS),thus activating the capacitors. This creates a first-order filter at theDAC output comprising the capacitor and the resistive component of thetransmission load. The first-order filter provides high frequencyfiltering for the differential output signal as well as any common-modesignal generated by the DAC.

[0131] In 100Base-TX or 1000Base-T where tighter output return loss isneeded, the switches are turned off. The bottom plate of each capacitoris left floating, having a high impedance connection to ground (VSS)through the off-impedance of the switch. This mode disables thefirst-order filter and preserves the wide-band high output impedance ofthe DAC.

[0132] The transmit signal cancellation circuit 5 of FIG. 1 incorporatesfirst and second replica transmitters, each of which are connected toand operatively responsive to a digital word representing an analogsignal to be transmitted. The first replica transmitter is coupled tothe receive signal path and develops a voltage mode signal which isequal to but opposite in phase of a voltage mode portion of the transmitsignal. The second replica transmitter is also coupled to the receivesignal path and develops a current mode signal having a direct phaserelationship with the transmit signal. The voltage mode and current modesignals are combined with the transmit signal on the receive signal pathand, in combination, cancel voltage and current mode components of thetransmit signal that might appear at the inputs of the receiver duringsimultaneous transmission and reception. In one particular aspect of theinvention, the main transmitter and the first and second replicatransmitters are constructed as current mode digital-to-analogconverters.

[0133]FIG. 22 depicts a semi-schematic, simplified block diagram of onearrangement of an integrated transceiver, including transmission signalcancellation circuitry in accordance with the present invention. Theintegrated transceiver is so termed because it is implemented as asingle integrated circuit chip. However, the transceiver is conceptuallyand functionally subdivided into a transmitter section 220 a and areceiver section 220 b connected to communicate analog bidirectionaldata in full duplex mode over unshielded twisted pair (UTP) wiring, suchas might be encountered in a typical local area network (LAN)architecture. In the exemplary embodiment of FIG. 22, the transmittersection 220 a and receiver section 220 b are coupled to a UTPtransmission channel through a line interface circuit 214 which providesDC offset cancellation, and the like between the transceiver signal I/Oand a twisted pair transmission channel 4.

[0134] In accordance with practice of principles of the invention, thetransceiver's transmit section 220 a is implemented to include a maintransmit digital-to-analog converter (TX DAC) 227 connected to receive adigital transmit signal and convert that signal into positive andnegative analog current mode signals suitable for transmission over thetwisted pair transmission channel 4.

[0135] In like fashion, the receiver section 220 b receives positive andnegative analog current mode signals from the transmission channel andconverts them into a digital representation in a receiveanalog-to-digital converter (RX ADC) circuit 215. Followinganalog-to-digital conversion, receive signals are directed to downstreamcircuitry in which digital representation of the receive signal isdemodulated, filtered and equalized by digital signal processing (DSP)circuitry as described in connection with FIG. 2. Prior to digitalconversion, the analog receive signal may be pre-processed by analogfront end circuitry 57 which is often adapted to condition and analogreceive signal to a form suitable for conversion by the receive ADC 215.

[0136] Front end circuitry 57 might suitably include a high pass or aband pass filter configured to remove a certain amount of noise andinterference from a raw analog receive signal. Band pass filtration isoften implemented in architectures where the transmission channel issubdivided into a number of different pass bands each adapted to carrycertain types of intelligence. Band pass filtration thus allows onlysignals occurring in desirable portions of the channel spectrum to bedirected to the receive ADC 215 for conversion and further signalprocessing.

[0137] Analog front end circuitry 57 might also include automatic gaincontrol circuitry, input buffer amplifiers, and the like, with variouscombinations being implemented depending on how the particular channelis configured and also depending on the input requirements of thereceive ADC 215, as is well understood by those having skill in the art.

[0138] From FIG. 22, it is evident that the signal lines carrying thepositive and negative analog receive signals are coupled between thereceiver section 220 b and the line interface circuit 214 in parallelwith the signal lines carrying the positive and negative analog transmitsignals. Necessarily, analog signals being transmitted to a remotetransceiver simultaneously with another remote transceiver'scommunicating an analog receive signal to the receiver section 220 b,will be asserted both on the transmit signal lines as well as on theparallel-connected receive signal lines. Accordingly, in the absence ofany conditioning or cancellation circuitry, an analog transmit signalwill superpose over an analog receive signal at the analog front end 57and/or the RX ADC 215. Given the substantially greater signal to noiseratio (SNR) of a non-channel impaired transmit signal to a receivesignal which is subject to channel impairment, leakage, echos, and thelike, it is evident that such an analog transmit signal wouldsubstantially perturb a receive signal, making analog-to-digitalconversion and downstream signal processing substantially moredifficult.

[0139] Signal conditioning or cancellation of the analog transmit signalfrom the analog receive signal path is accomplished by cancellationcircuitry which is coupled into the transmit and receive signal paths ata 3-way signal nexis between the transmit DAC 227, the receive ADC 215and the line interface circuit 214. Cancellation circuitry suitablyincludes two quasi-parasitic current mode digital-to-analog converters,termed herein a positive replica DAC 226 and a negative replica DAC 225,in combination with first and second cancellation resistors 228 and 229.The positive and negative replica DACS 226 and 225, respectively, are sotermed because of the relationship of their signal sense configurationswith respect to the positive and negative output signal lines of the TXDAC 227.

[0140] In the case of the positive replica DAC 226, its positive signalline is coupled to the positive signal line output from the transmit DAC227 while its negative signal line is, likewise coupled to the negativesignal line of the transmit DAC. In the case of the negative replica DAC225, its positive signal line is coupled through cancellation resistor229 to the negative signal line output from the transmit DAC 227. Thenegative replica DAC's negative signal line is coupled throughcancellation resistor 228 to the positive signal line of the transmitDAC. Each of the DACs 227, 226 and 225 are coupled to receive the samedigital transmit signal, i.e., the signal intended for conversion by thetransmit DAC 227 and transmission over the channel 4 through the lineinterface circuit 214. Thus, the input to all of the DACs is anidentical signal.

[0141] In operation, the negative replica DAC 225 may be implemented asa current mode DAC and functions, in combination with cancellationresistors 228 and 229, to define a cancellation voltage, with equalvalue but opposite phase to the output defined by the transmit DAC 227.Because a negative replica DAC is likewise coupled, in reverse fashion,to the receive ADC 215, the cancellation voltage may also be thought ofas applied to the analog front end. Thus, voltage components of atransmit signal are removed from the receive signal lines prior to theirintroduction to the analog front end.

[0142] Because the cancellation voltage is developed by sourcing/sinkingcurrent through cancellation resistors 228 and 229, the excess currentssourced/sunk by the negative replica DAC 225 must also be compensated atthe output signal lines in order to ensure a proper output voltage atthe line interface circuit 214. The positive replica DAC 226 providesthe necessary current cancellation function by sinking/sourcing amatched, but opposite phase, current to that developed by the negativereplica DAC, thus resulting in zero excess current at the load,indicated in the line interface circuit 214 of FIG. 22 asseries-connected resistors 211 and 212, disposed between the positiveand negative output signal paths and including a common center tap to aground potential. It should be mentioned that the configuration of theline interface circuit illustrated in FIG. 22 is an AC equivalentcircuit. It will be understood that the circuit is able to berepresented in several DC configurations, which will exhibit the same ora substantially similar AC characteristic. Thus the line interfacecircuit 214 is exemplary.

[0143] In operation, cancellation resistors 228 and 229 definecancellation voltages between the outputs of the transmit DAC 227 andthe inputs to the receive ADC 215 as a function of a bias current,developed by an adjustable bias circuit 224. The adjustable bias circuit224 is connected to the positive replica DAC and the negative replicaDAC and provides an adjustable bias current to each of the circuitcomponents. The cancellation voltage developed by the cancellationresistors 228 and 229 must cancel the output voltage of the transmit DAC227 such that the signal at the receive ADC terminals closely track onlya signal received from a remote transmitter at the other end of thetransmission channel 4. The cancellation voltage across eachcancellation resistor is necessarily equal to the value of thecancellation resistor times the current through that resistor (currentsourced/sunk by the negative replica DAC). In order to provide effectivecancellation, this cancellation voltage must be equal to the outputvoltage of the transmit DAC which is, in turn, equal to the currentproduced by the transmit DAC times the load resistance at each terminal(resistor 211 or resistor 212 in parallel with one half the distributedresistance value of the twisted pair wire of the transmission channel).

[0144] In accordance with the exemplary embodiment, transmit DAC 227 isimplemented as a current mode DAC and defines an output current which isa function of a bias current, in turn defined by a bias circuit 221, thecurrent gain of the bias circuit 221 and the current gain of thetransmit DAC 227. Likewise, the cancellation voltage developed by thenegative replica DAC 225 is a function of the values of cancellationresistors 228 and 229, the current gain of the adjustable bias circuit224 and the current gain of the negative replica DAC 225.

[0145]FIG. 23 is a simplified circuit schematic diagram of the biascircuit 221 of the transmit DAC 227. In simple terms, the bias circuit221 might be described as a voltage follower in combination with a biasresistor which develops a stable reference current through one leg of acurrent mirror. The stable reference current is mirrored to an outputcurrent having a particular value defined by the stable referencecurrent and the transistor geometries of the devices defining thecurrent mirror.

[0146] In particular, a reference voltage (V_(REF)) is applied to thepositive terminal of an operational amplifier 231 whose output controlsthe gate terminal of an N-channel transistor 235. The N-channeltransistor 235 is configured as a voltage follower, by having its sourceterminal fed back to the negative input of the operational amplifier231. A current source transistor 232 is coupled between the voltagefollower device 235 and a power supply potential such as V_(DD) so as tosupply a source of current to the voltage follower device 235. As willbe understood by those having skill in the art, the voltage followerdevice, in combination with the operational amplifier 231 function toimpress a stable voltage at the device's source node which is equal tothe value of the reference voltage V_(REF) applied to the positiveterminal of the operational amplifier 231. A bias resistor 222 iscoupled between the voltage follower's source node and ground potential,so as to define a particular current value therethrough equal to thereference voltage V_(REF) divided by the value of the bias resistor 222.This current is mirrored to a mirror transistor 233 which is configuredwith its gate terminal in common to the current source transistor 232.Thus, the mirror transistor 233 conducts a proportional amount ofcurrent to the current source transistor 232, with the proportionalitygoverned solely by the ratio of the sizes of the mirror transistor tothe current source transistor.

[0147] If, for example, with a given reference V_(REF) the value of biasresistor 222 were selected in such a way as to define a current of 1 mAthrough current source transistor 232, and if mirror transistor 233 wereconstructed to have a width over length (W/L) ratio of twice that of thesource transistor, mirror transistor 233 would define a bias current of2 mA at the bias circuit output 234. Thus, the bias current developed bybias circuit 221 will be understood to be a stable current which is afunction of V_(REF), the bias resistor 22 and the ratio of transistorsizes of the current mirror. The ratio of transistor sizes of thecurrent mirror determines the current gain of the mirror and is easilycalculable and adjustable during circuit design.

[0148] Turning now to FIG. 24, there is depicted a simplified transistorschematic diagram for the adjustable current bias circuit 224 of FIG.22. The construction and operation of the adjustable current biascircuit 224 is similar to construction and operation of the bias circuit221 described in connection with FIG. 23 above. An operational amplifier241 is operatively responsive to a reference voltage V_(REF) andcontrols the gate terminal of an N-channel transistor configured as avoltage follower 242 to mirror the reference voltage value at its sourceterminal. A bias resistor 223 is coupled between the source terminal andground potential in order to develop a reference current therethrough ina manner similar to the bias resistor 222 of FIG. 23. A current sourcetransistor 243 is coupled between V_(DD) and the source terminal of thevoltage follower transistor 242 and mirrors the reference current toparallel-coupled mirror transistors 244 and 245. Mirror transistors 244and 245 each define a bias current at respective output nodes 247 and246 of the adjustable bias circuit 224.

[0149] In contrast to the bias circuit 221 of FIG. 23 above, the mirrortransistors 244 and 245 are each constructed to be 1/5 the size (have1/5 the W/L ratio) of the current source transistor 243. If thereference current developed across bias resistor 223 was designed tohave a value of 1 mA, the current conducted by mirror transistors 244and 245 would necessarily have a value equal to about 0.2 mA. Thus, thecurrent gain of adjustable bias circuit 98 would be in the range ofabout 0.2, while the current gain of 224 e bias circuit 221 would be inthe range of about 2.0.

[0150] In a particular embodiment of the present invention, the biascurrents developed by mirror transistors 244 and 245 are able to beadjusted to compensate for variations in transmission line load in orderto produce a null transmission signal voltage at the inputs to thereceive ADC. Bias current adjustment may be made by adaptively changingthe value of bias resistor 223 in order to adaptively modify the valueof the reference current developed therethrough. Adjusting the value ofthe bias resistor 223 can be carried out internally by trimming theresistor at the time the apparatus is packaged as an integrated circuit,or by adaptively writing a control word to a control register thatcontrols the configuration of a resistor ladder. Likewise, it will beunderstood that adjustment may be made externally by coupling apotentiometer or variable resistor in parallel with bias resistor 223.

[0151] Alternatively, bias current adjustment may be made by dynamicallychanging, or adjusting, the sizes of the mirror transistors 244 and 245as well as the size of the source transistor. In the present exemplarycase, where a 1:5 ratio between currents is desired, the current sourcetransistor might be constructed as an array of fifty (50) transistors,and each of the mirror transistors might be constructed as an array often (10) transistors. As changes in the current ratio become desirable,fuse-links coupling the transistors into the array might be “opened” byapplication of a current, thereby removing a selected transistor ortransistors from the array.

[0152] Adjusting a bias current by adaptively “trimming” transistorsgives a high degree of flexibility and control to the actual value ofthe current output by the circuit. Transistor trimming of transistorsconfigured in a series-parallel array allows incremental fine tuning ofcurrents, the precision of which is limited only by the number oftransistors in the array and the unit widths (W) and lengths (L) usedfor the elemental transistors.

[0153] Returning now to FIG. 22, it should be noted that the currentgains of the transmit DAC 227, the positive replica DAC 226 and thenegative replica DAC 225 are all designed to be matched and identical.This is accomplished by replicating the integrated circuit design of thetransmit DAC to the positive and negative replica DACS. Thus, since thetransistor layout and design parameters of all of the DACs are similarit would be expected that the performance characteristics, such as gain,of the DACs would be similar as well. In like fashion, the circuitdesign and layout of the bias circuit 221 is replicated in theadjustable bias circuit 224, with the exception of the transistorsizings of the mirror transistors. Thus, the current gain of theadjustable current b-as circuit 224 is expected to proportionally trackthe current gain of current bias circuit 221 over the corners ofintegrated circuit manufacturing process variations. That is, if thegain of bias circuit 221 is skewed in one direction by a certainpercentage, the gain of the adjustable bias circuit 224 will be expectedto also vary in the same direction by approximately the same percentage.Accordingly, the ratio of the bias current developed by bias circuit 221to the bias currents developed by adjustable bias circuit 224will-remain substantially constant.

[0154] In accordance with the principles of the invention, the currentgain of the adjustable bias circuit 224 is chosen to be substantiallysmaller than the current gain of bias circuit 221, in order to minimizethe current and power requirements of the positive and negative replicaDAC's line driver circuitry. Accordingly, the values for thecancellation resistors 228 and 229 are selected so as to develop acancellation voltage equal to the transmit DAC output voltage, based onthe designed current gains. In other words, based on Ohm's law, thesmaller the output current, larger the required cancellation resistorsin order to produce a fixed cancellation voltage equal to the transmitDAC output voltage.

[0155] Because the positive replica DAC 226 is closely matched inperformance characteristics with a negative replica DAC 227, the currentthat the negative replica DAC sources/sinks is canceled by a matchedcurrent sunk/sourced by the positive replica DAC. This currentcancellation results in zero excess current at the transmit DAC output,leaving only the desired transmit signal at the line interface load.

[0156] In order to ensure stability of the voltage cancellation functionover manufacturing process parameter, power supply voltage and thermalvariations, the adjustable bias circuit resistor 223 and thecancellation resistors 228 and 229 are constructed from the samesemiconductor material (polysilicon, for example) and are laid out inproximity to one another so as to track each other over processparametric, power supply and/or thermal variations. In this manner,induced cancellation voltages across cancellation resistors 228 and 229,will be understood to be independent of process variations. Because thepositive replica DAC 226 is driven by the same adjustable bias circuit224 as the negative replica DAC 225, the cancellation currents developedby the positive replica DAC will be expected to closely track thecurrents developed through negative replica DAC 225.

[0157] One particular utility of the present invention may be found inits ability to produce a cancellation signal which is substantially amirror image of a simultaneously asserted transmit signal and providethe cancellation signal at the input of a transceiver's receive ADC oranalog front end. The effectiveness of the present invention will bemore clearly understood with reference to the timing diagram of FIG. 25which illustrates the signal state at various nodes in the exemplarytransceiver circuit of FIG. 22. For example, the periodic signaldepicted at FIG. 25(a) might represent the source voltage developed by aremote transceiver at the other end of the transmission line which is tobe received by the local transceiver. The signal depicted at FIG. 25(c)might represent an analog transmit signal developed by the localtransmitter and which is simultaneously asserted to the line interfacecircuit and the transmission channel as the intended receive signaldepicted at FIG. 25(a). The signal illustrated in FIG. 25(b) representsthe signal that might be seen on the channel (4 of FIG. 22) and might bedescribed as a linear combination of the transmit signal (c) and thereceive signal (a) along with such impairments as are common in UTPtransmission channels.

[0158] The signal depicted at FIG. 25(d) represents the signal appearingat the input to the analog front end or the receive ADC, after thetransmit cancellation signal has been subtracted from the combinationsignal at (b). As can be seen from the waveform diagrams of FIG. 25, thereceive signal (d) has a substantially greater fidelity to the originalsignal (a) than the combination signal (b) appearing on the channel.

[0159] Notwithstanding its ability to effectively and accurately cancellocal transmit signals from a local receiver's input signal path, theinvention is additionally advantageous in that it obviates the need forcomplex and costly external magnetic hybrid circuits to interfacebetween a transceiver in a twisted pair transmission channel. Inparticular, as can be seen in FIG. 22, the line interface circuit 214,between the transceiver and the channel, can be simply implemented by apair of series coupled resistors and a relatively simple transformerelement (indicated at 213 in FIG. 22) which, in the present case, isneeded only to provide common-mode voltage rejection and DC isolationbetween the channel and the transceiver I/O.

[0160] Further, transmit signal cancellation circuitry and the lineinterface circuit are particularly suitable for implementation in asingle chip integrated circuit. The replica DACs and resistors are allconstructed of common integrated circuit elements and can be implementedon a single chip along with the remaining components of a high speedbidirectional communication transceiver. In accordance with theinvention, only the transformer portion of a line interface circuit iscontemplated as an off-chip circuit element. Even though the exemplaryembodiment contemplates the transformer being provided off-chip, it willbe understood by those familiar with integrated circuit design andfabrication that suitable transformers can be constructed fromintegrated circuit elements, such as combinations of spiral inductors,and the like, and still provide sufficient DC coupling between atransmission channel and an integrated circuit transceiver.

[0161] While the adaptive signal cancellation circuitry has beendescribed in terms of integrated circuit technology implementing agigabit-type multi-pair ethernet transceiver, it will be evident to onehaving skill in the art that the invention may be suitably implementedin other semiconductor technologies, such as bipolar, bi-CMOS, and thelike as well as be portable to other forms of bidirectionalcommunication devices that operate in full duplex mode. Moreover, thecircuitry according to the invention may be constructed from discretecomponents as opposed to a monolithic circuit, so long as the individualcomponents are matched as closely as possible to one another.

[0162] A multi-transmitter communication system may be configured fortransmitting analog signals over a multi-channel communication network.The system is constructed to incorporate M transmitters, each having anoutput for serving a transmit signal on a transmit signal pathelectrically coupled between each communication channel and the outputof the respective transmitter. A timing circuit is electrically coupledto each transmitter for providing the required timing signals for eachtransmitter. The timing signals for the transmitters define a clockdomain that is staggered in time resulting in a respective phase shiftof the output signals of each transmitter. In one embodiment of thepresent invention, the timing signals are staggered in time forpredetermined time intervals to reduce aggregate electromagneticemission caused by signal images centered around integer multiples offrequency Fi of the M transmitters. M timing references staggered intime by 1/(Fi*M) are generated by the timing circuit to drive the outputof each of the M transmitters respectively.

[0163] Referring now to FIG. 26, an emission reduction technique forfour transmitters is shown. In one embodiment of the present invention,a common time reference circuit 7 provides the required timing signalsto all of the transmitters, however, the time reference to eachtransmitter is delayed by a predetermined period of time. The timereference staggered delays, 116 a to 116 d, of each transmitter ischosen to reduce the aggregate EMI emissions of the system. Thisapproach also reduces the noise from the system power supplies byrequiring smaller current requirement at a given time. This techniquecan be extended to systems with several transmitters such that the timereference to the multiple transmitters are staggered on a PCB or an ICchip using delay lines or delay logic. The time staggering signals canbe derived, for example, from a PLL as shown in FIG. 5.

[0164] Assuming an output sample frequency of Fi, images contributing toEMI emissions for each transmitter are centered around 1*Fi, 2*Fi, 3*Fi,. . . , the time references of M transmitters are staggered in time by1/(Fi*M). This timing arrangement places nulls, in the aggregate EMIemissions, at 1*Fi, 2*Fi, 3*Fi, . . . except at frequency multiples ofM*Fi. This staggering technique reduces the EMI emissions caused byimages located around the null frequencies.

[0165] As an example, images of a single 10Base-T transmitter arelocated at 160 MHz, 320 MHz, 480 MHz, . . . . -or an application whichimplements four transmitters on a single chip, the time references arestaggered by 1.5625 ns (1/(Fi*M)). This reduces the aggregate EMIemissions of the single chip device at 160 MHz, 320 MHz, 480 MHz, 800MHz, . . . but not at 640 MHz, 1280 MHz, . . . . FIG. 27 shows the imagecomponents of four exemplary transmitters. The images are each shiftedby 90 degrees in phase, and by 1.5625 ns in time. As illustrated by thetiming diagram of FIG. 6, the aggregate power of the images is zero.

[0166] For the above 10Base-T example, the aggregate image voltage offour transmitters, before any staggering, can be represented by:

[0167] V=Sin(2π.160 MHZ. t)+Sin(2π.160 MHZ. t)+Sin(2π.160 MHZ.t)+Sin(2π.160 MHZ. t)=4 Sin(2π.160 MHZ. t). However, after staggeringthe timing reference of each transmitter by 1.5625 ns (Δt), theaggregate image voltage is:

[0168] V′=Sin(2#.160 MHZ. t)+Sin(2π.160 MHZ. (t+≢t))+Sin (2π.160 MHZ.(t+2Δt))+Sin(2π.160 MHZ. (t+3Δt). The terms of this equation cancel outeach other at 160+Mhz. The same cancellation effect occurs for images at320 MHz, 480 MHz, 800 MHz, . . . but not at 640 MHz, 1280 MHz, . . . .This technique can be implemented in any electronic subsystem includingPCBs and ZC chips.

[0169] The staggered timing signals can be accurately generated by atiming circuit, such as a PLL that includes a Voltage Control Oscillator(VCO). FIG. 11 depicts a PLL used for generating thee required staggeredtiming signals for the multiple transmitter configuration in oneembodiment of the present invention. Other techniques for generatingtiming reference signals known in the art of circuit design may also beused to generate the required staggered timing signals.

[0170] The present invention is additionally advantageous in that it canbe configured to operate between and among various Ethernet transmissionstandards. In particular, by merely disabling or r=enabling groups ofmemory arrays and current driver cells, the transmitter according to theinvention can operate under 10BASE-7, 100BASE-T, 100BASE-Tx and1000BASE-T standards seamlessly. Thus, a single integrated circuittransceiver is able to perform a multiplicity of roles under a varietyof conditions in a seamless and flexible manner.

[0171] Neither are the principles of the invention limited to theparticular Ethernet standards discussed above. As standards evolve,differing digital filtering and output voltage swing requirements areeasily accommodated by the present invention by changing the contents ofthe memory device, and changing the “width” of the DAC control word andthe number of driver cells to capture the new requirements. Nor is theinvention limited by the number of cells making up a voltage step. DACresolution and accuracy can be further enhanced by defining “quarter”cells, and the like, and making appropriate changes to the decoder andswitching logic sections.

[0172] It will be recognized by those skilled in the art that variousmodifications may be made to the illustrated and other embodiments ofthe invention described above, without departing from the broadinventive scope thereof. It will be understood therefore that theinvention is not limited to the particular embodiments or arrangementsdisclosed, but is rather intended to cover any changes, adaptations ormodifications which are within the scope and spirit of the invention asdefined by the appended claims.

What is claimed is:
 1. A communication system including a differentialsignal transmitter, the transmitter comprising: a multiplicity of signalcomponent output circuits, each signal component output circuit operablein a first mode sensitive to a first metric and a second mode sensitiveto a second metric; and a selection circuit, the selection circuitasserting control signals adaptively configuring each signal componentoutput circuit to operate in either the first mode or the second mode.2. The communication system according to claim 1, wherein thetransmitter includes an output DAC, the output DAC further including aDAC decoder circuit, the decoder circuit receiving input digital signalsand outputting a control word to the signal component output circuits,wherein the control word is the same for both the first and secondmodes.
 3. The communication system according to claim 2, the selectioncircuit further comprising: a first logic circuit connected to receivethe control word, the first logic circuit asserting control signalswhich operate a corresponding signal component output circuit in thefirst mode; and a second logic circuit connected to receive the controlword, the second logic circuit asserting control signals which operate acorresponding signal component output circuit in the second mode.
 4. Thecommunication system according to claim 3, each signal component outputcircuit contributing a particular signal quantum to a differentialoutput signal, a maximal value of the sum of said quanta determined by aparticular transmission standard, the maximal value defined by acorresponding number of signal component output circuits, wherein thecontrol word adaptively disables a set of signal component outputcircuits so as to limit the maximal value of the sum of the signalquanta contributed by the remaining signal component output circuits toa value determined by a second transmission standard.
 5. Thecommunication system according to claim 4, wherein the first metriccorresponds to radiative emissions and wherein the second metriccorresponds to power consumption.
 6. The communication system accordingto claim 5, wherein each signal component output circuit comprises adifferential current mode driver cell, the first mode comprising aClass-A constant common-mode current, the second mode comprising aClass-B variable common-mode current.
 7. The communication systemaccording to claim 6, wherein the control word takes on a same value toboth adaptively disable a set of signal component output circuits and tocontrol operation of the same set of signal component output circuitswith respect to the first or second modes.
 8. A communication systemincluding a differential signal transmitter, the transmitter comprising:a multiplicity of signal component output circuits, each signalcomponent output circuit contributing a particular signal quantum to adifferential output signal, a maximal value of the sum of said quantadetermined by a particular transmission standard, the maximal valuedefined by a corresponding number of signal component output circuits;and a selection circuit, the selection circuit asserting control signalsto each of said signal component output circuits, wherein the controlsignals adaptively disable a set of signal component output circuits soas to limit the maximal value of the sum of the signal quantacontributed by the remaining signal component output circuits to a valuedetermined by a second transmission standard.
 9. The communicationsystem according to claim 8, wherein the multiplicity of signalcomponent output circuits are operable in a first mode sensitive to afirst metric and a second mode sensitive to a second metric, thetransmitter further comprising a selection circuit, the selectioncircuit asserting control signals adaptively configuring each signalcomponent output circuit to operate in either the first mode or thesecond mode.
 10. The communication system according to claim 9, whereinthe transmitter includes an output DAC, the output DAC further includinga DAC decoder circuit, the decoder circuit receiving input digitalsignals and outputting a control word to the signal component outputcircuits, wherein the control word is the same for both the first andsecond modes.
 11. The communication system according to claim 10, theselection circuit further comprising: a first logic circuit connected toreceive the control word, the first logic circuit asserting controlsignals which operate a corresponding signal component output circuit inthe first mode; and a second logic circuit connected to receive thecontrol word, the second logic circuit asserting control signals whichoperate a corresponding signal component output circuit in the secondmode.
 12. The communication system according to claim 11, wherein thefirst metric corresponds to radiative emissions and wherein the secondmetric corresponds to power consumption.
 13. The communication systemaccording to claim 12, wherein each signal component output circuitcomprises a differential current mode driver cell, the first modecomprising a Class-A constant common-mode current, the second modecomprising a Class-B variable common-mode current.
 14. The communicationsystem according to claim 13, wherein the control word takes on a samevalue to both adaptively disable a set of signal component outputcircuits and to control operation of the same set of signal componentoutput circuits with respect to the first or second modes.
 15. Thecommunication system according to claim 14, wherein the transmitterincludes an output DAC, the output DAC further including a DAC decodercircuit, the decoder circuit receiving input digital signals andoutputting a control word to the signal component output circuits. 16.The communication system according to claim 15, each differentialcurrent mode driver cell comprising: first and second current sources,each conducting an equal quanta of current; first and seconddifferential pairs, each pair coupled to a respective current source; apair of differential outputs, a first output connected to a firsttransistor comprising each of the differential pairs, a second outputconnected to a second transistor comprising each of the differentialpairs; and four control signal inputs, each input controlling to arespective one of the transistors comprising the first and seconddifferential pairs.
 17. A communication system including a differentialsignal transmitter, the transmitter comprising: a DAC decoder circuit,the DAC decoder circuit outputting DAC control words corresponding todigital input signals; a differential current mode driver cell array; aselection circuit, the selection circuit asserting control signals inoperative response to DAC control words, the selection circuit placingindividual cells of the current driver cell array into a firstoperational mode sensitive to a first metric or into a secondoperational mode sensitive to a second metric in response to a selectsignal.
 18. The communication system according to claim 17, wherein thefirst metric corresponds to radiative emissions and wherein the secondmetric corresponds to power consumption.
 19. The communication systemaccording to claim 18, each differential current mode driver cellcomprising: first and second current sources, each conducting an equalquanta of current; first and second differential pairs, each paircoupled to a respective current source; a pair of differential outputs,a first output connected to a first transistor comprising each of thedifferential pairs, a second output connected to a second transistorcomprising each of the differential pairs; and four control signalinputs, each input controlling to a respective one of the transistorscomprising the first and second differential pairs.
 20. Thecommunication system according to claim 19, further comprising: a firstlogic circuit connected to receive the DAC control word, the first logiccircuit asserting control signals which operate a corresponding signalcomponent output circuit in the first mode; and a second logic circuitconnected to receive the control word, the second logic circuitasserting control signals which operate a corresponding signal componentoutput circuit in the second mode.
 21. The communication systemaccording to claim 20, each differential current mode driver cellcomprising: first and second current sources, each conducting an equalquanta of current; first and second differential pairs, each paircoupled to a respective current source; a pair of differential outputs,a first output connected to a first transistor comprising each of thedifferential pairs, a second output connected to a second transistorcomprising each of the differential pairs; and a set of control signalinputs, each input of the set controlling a respective one of thetransistors comprising the first and second differential pairs.
 22. Thecommunication system according to claim 21, the first and second logiccircuits each defining control signals in response to a DAC controlword, said first and second differential pairs operatively responsive tosaid control signals to output a differential signal in either the firstmode or the second mode.
 23. The communication system according to claim22, wherein the DAC control word is the same when the first and seconddifferential pairs output a differential signal in either the first modeor the second mode.
 24. The communication system according to claim 23,wherein the first mode is a Class-A mode and wherein the second mode isa Class-B mode.
 25. A communication system including a differentialsignal transmitter, the transmitter comprising: a multiplicity of signalcomponent output circuits; first means for adaptively configuring saidsignal component output circuits to operate in either a first emissionssensitive mode or a second power sensitive mode; and second means foradaptively configuring said signal component output circuits to operatein accordance with at least two transmission standards, wherein saidfirst and second means are implemented in a single integrated circuit.